Meat-cutting machine.



' G. W, STENZ. MEAT CUTTING MACHINE.

' APPLIOATION FILED JULY 20, 1907.

.908 ,348, I Patented Deo. 29, 1908.

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GEORGE W. STENZ, OF ASHLAND, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-THIRD TO ADAFI STENZ. l

OF ASHLAND, WISCONSIN.

MEAT-CUTTING MACHINE.

Specication of Letters Patent.

. Patented Dec. 29, 1908.

To all whom 'it may concern: Y

Be it known that I, GEORGE W. STENZ, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Ashland, in the county of Ashland and State of Wisconsin, have invented new and useful Improvements in Meat-Cutting Machines, of which the following is a specilication.

This invention relates to improvements in meat cutting machines of that class in which a thumb screw operates in a cylinder and forces the meat to a cutter and through openings in a discharge plate, and the said invention consists in 'the construction, combination and arrangement of d evices hereinafter described and claimed.

One object of my invention is to provide means for driving the cutter independently of and' at a higher rate of speed than the feed screw. 'K

A further object is to effect improvements in the construction of the discharge plate, whereby the superiicial area of said discharge plate is increased and the latter is enab ed to be provided with a greater number of discharge openings for the meat so that the meat will be prevented from being unduly compressed in' t 1e machine. A further object' is to provide means for `adjusting the cutter withreference to the perforated discharge plate.

In the accompanying drawings,-Figur e 1 is a side elevation of a meat cutting machine constructed in accordance with my invention. tral sectional view of the same. Fig. 3 is a similar view of one end of the same, showing the gearing in a different position. from that indicated in Fig. 2. y Fig. 4 is a detail eleva-l tion'of the cutter y The cylinder 1 with its hopper 2 for feeding meat into one end of the cylinder is of the usual construction. In accordance with m invention the feed screw 3, which is ot erwise of the usual form,A is provided at its rear end with a conical extension 4 which projects beyond the rear or discharge end of Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal 'cenis mounted for rotation with and by the said gear 7. The feed screw is provided with a central cylindrical bore through which extends a shaft 10 which drives the cutter 11.

The said cutter comprises a cylindrical head I1;

12 having a polygonal recess 13 for the reception of a similarly shaped shoulder 14 at one end of the shaft 10, a plurality'of cutter knives 15 which are inclined laterally with respect to the said head and converge toward such head, landA a'eentrally disposed stud 16 which projects from the outer side of the said head, is threaded and forms an adjusting screw.

At the discharge end of the cyl'uider 1 is a discharge plate 17 whichA is conical in form and is provided at its inner larger end with an annular circumferentialshoulder 18 which fits in a similarly sha ed groove 19 in said end ofthe c linder. collar 20 is screwed-on such end o the cylinder and has a lilange 21 on its outer side which engages the flange 18 of the conical discharge plate and locks such plate to the said cylinder. The 'said plate is provided with a p urality of discharge openings' 22 for the passage of the cut particles of meat, and owing to the shape of the said plate it is evident that a greater number of these openings may be provided than is possible wnere the plate, as is usual in machines of this class, is a flat disk, the diameter of increased, and such plate may be provided.

with a sufficient number of discharge openings toenable the meat fed thereto by the screw and cut by the cutter to be forced through such openingswithout beingsub- .jected' to undue and ingurlous compression.

The outer end 'of the said conical discharge plate is provided with` a concentric cylindrical extensionv 23 open at its outer end and provided therein' with an annular recess 24 providin an annular shoulder 25. A cap plate 26 1s revoluble in said recess and against s uch shoulder and hence has its bearing in the said cylindrical extension of the discharge plate. Such cap plate is provided with a central opening through whic x the ad justing screw 16 of the cutter extends and is further provided with o cnings for thereception of a pair of stu s 27 which regent from the outer side of the head 12 of t e cuto-ter shaft 45 on which arcgears 46, 47,

' adjusted longitudinally I ter so that the cutter is connected to the said cap plate to cause the cap plate' to rotate with the cutter. An adjusting nut 28, which is here shown as having wings29, whereby it may be readily turned manually, is provided for the adjusting screw.1 6 and bears against the outer side oftheA ap late and serves to adjust the cutter, .las be readily underood, to enable'the y'cutter to be moved as U ay be required-from time to time to compensate for wear ofthe knives or blades l5 thereof and of theinner surface of the discharge plate. l

, 'A frame 30 is here shown at the front end lof the'cylinder, secured to the latter and'also to\the base 3.1 on which the supporting legs 32 of the cylinder rest. The said frame has a bearing 33 for a driving shaft 34. Said shaft is adjustable longitudinally in the said bearand is provided with annular circumfer- ,ential adjusting grooves 135, 36, either of which may befengaged by a key 37 which is inserted vin an opening 3S in the u per side of the'said bearing. Said drivings aft is provided with suitable means, here shown as a hand'- crank 39, whereby it may be rotated andis provided at its inner end with a pinl ion 40 and with clutch studs 41'. The said ina cylindrical recess 42 for the reception of a Q? similarly-shaped sleeve or boss 43 which projects from the outer side of the gear 7, and said' gear-'is also provided in its outer side I' with clutch openings 44 for engagement by 'the clutch studs 41 `when the said driving shaft is movedv vinwardly to' the position shown in Fig. 3, to lock such shaft directly to the said4 gear 7. f 1

The frame 30 provides bearings for a coulilit e former larger than fthe latter.- A'llhasaid gear 46 may be engaged or l disengagedzby' the pinion 40, according to the osition in which the latter is placed by the justment ofthe driving shaft. The gear 47 Ais at'alll times inengagement with the gear 7. Said driving shaft has a recess 480i polygonal form cross-secltionally for the reception of a similarly shaped extension 49 at one end ofthe shaft 10. The

length of the saidextension of the said shaft is f such as lto enap without causing it vto be disengaged from the shaft 10, and hence "the shaft 10 of the cutter is under all condi- 'itions connected. to the driving shaft for ro- "tation thereby. When the driving shaft is in the position indicated in Fig;2, unclutched from the gear 7, and is rotated, power therefrom is transmitted to the gear 46,' from the driving shaft has its inner end provided withy 'rate of speed, and the gears 46, 47 rotate idly. To enable "the meat to be readily forced -head i. le the driving shaft 34 to' be j latter to the gear 47, and from such gear to 60 y the gear 7 so that the said gears act as s eedreducing gears to enable the cutter sha t l0, which is driven directly by the driving shaft, to be revolved with its cutter at a higher rate of speed than the feed screw, to enable the cutter to cut the meat as fast as it can be supplied thereto by the feed screw and prevent the meat from being subjected to an undue degree of compression and also reduce the ower `required to 'operate the machine. 70v

,When the driving shaft is coupled directly to the feed screw as well as to the shaft of the cutter, as shownin'llig. 3, the cutter and shaft are driven together and at the same around to the feed hopper through the action i' I of the feed screw l provide the hopper With a hinged cover 50, its hinge being shown at 51 and provide the said cover at its free side with a handle 52 which serves as. a lever whereby to depress the cover and cause the latter to force the meat down through the hopper to the action of the feed screw. V

l do not desire to limit myself to the preciseconstructionand combination of devices hereinshown and described, as it is evident that modifications may be made therein within the scope of the appended claim.

Having thus described-the invention,'what is claimed as new, isz- In a meat cutting machine of the class described, the combination of a cylinder hav# ing a conical discharge plate provided with a concentric cylindrical p ortion having an internal annular shoulder, a cap 'plate revoluble'in said cylindrical portion and bearing against said shoulder, a feed screw revoluble in the cylinder and having a central long'itu dinal bore, a Ashaft in said bore and having an angular end portion, a cutter comprising a and a blade, said head having a socket ortion of the shaft and adapting said hea to move longitudinally with respect to said shaft, said headbeing slidably connected to and revoluble with said cap plate and havinga screw stud o erating in an opening in said ca pfplate an an adjusting nut on said screw stud and bearing Geenen w. STENZ. Witnesses:

RE. CoLLnR, W. T.-W1Lcox.

receiving the end. 

